observations and reflections of everyday life

Life’s not about the finish line…

it’s about the route, the detours, and the pictures we take along the way.

‘How fast can I get there,’, ‘how much can I get done in the 30 minutes I have between meetings?,’ ‘how quickly can I get to the finish line?’ have become the questions that guide our day and direct our actions.

Tonight I took a simple detour.

I took my camera along with me on my bike ride. I’ve ridden or run along the canal at least a hundred times. It wasn’t until I was tasked with the assignment of writing a nature essay that I really began to take note of the subtle differences along the various sections of the waterway.

Armed with my camera and a mission to capture images to assist me in completing my essay, I set out. My goal was to take pictures that would compliment my notes from yesterday and then sit down and whip up an essay about the canal.

What happened was a surprise to me.

At first I rapidly shot pictures, in a hurry to capture the images, but still determined to ‘have a decent pace:’ a time and distance I’d feel good about recording in my training log.

Instead I found myself looking at my watch less and less, and enjoying the nuances of the summer evening more and more.

I was tempted to put the camera away as I turned and headed toward home, one last chance to make this a ‘real ride’. I’m glad I kept the camera out. believe it or not, things look different when you’re traveling in the opposite direction.

In the end, it really wasn’t about taking pictures, it was about enjoying the moment.

If you haven’t done it lately, give it a try. Whether it’s with a camera or not, slow down along the way and take time for a detour, or a new route. Take time, to ‘take some pictures’.